Backend Projects (Real Systems, Real Portfolio)

The best backend projects look like real backend work, not tutorials. These are real backend systems you fix in a live cloud workspace - an N+1 query, JWT auth, a race condition, a webhook - each one a portfolio piece hiring managers can open.

Why these beat a tutorial clone

A tutorial clone shows you can follow steps. Fixing a real backend system shows you can reason about reliability, data, and correctness - what the job is actually about.

18 projects to start with

Add a NOT NULL Column With a Zero-Downtime BackfillBackend · Senior Refactor Globals Into Dependency InjectionBackend · Senior Design a URL Shortener (System Design)Backend · Senior Design a Rate Limiter (Token Bucket)Backend · Senior Build a Webhook Delivery System With RetriesBackend · Mid Fix the N+1 QueryBackend · Mid Stop a Double-Charge Race ConditionBackend · Mid Instrument an API With OpenTelemetryBackend · Mid Stream Tokens Over Server-Sent Events (SSE)Backend · Mid Verify a Stripe Webhook Signature (HMAC)Backend · Mid Plug a Go Goroutine LeakBackend · Mid Migrate an Express Route to FastifyBackend · Mid Fix a Node.js Memory LeakBackend · Mid Fan Out Events With AWS SNS and SQSBackend · Mid Return the Correct HTTP Status CodeBackend · Junior Repair Broken API PaginationBackend · Junior Add CORS Middleware to an Express APIBackend · Junior Add a Health Check Endpoint in GoBackend · Junior

Pick by what you want to prove

Want to show you can secure an API? Do the auth one. Scale a slow endpoint? Do the query and caching ones. Each finished fix is concrete evidence on your portfolio.

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